Strand winding machine



' F. C. BERGER STRAND WINDING MACHINE Jam 2, 1940.

Filed Jan. 19, 1939 INVENTOR B. E CIBERGER ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 2, 1940 STRAND WINDING MACHINE Frederick C. Ber r. Brooklyn, N. Y., assignmto Bell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated; New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York lClaim.

This invention relates to a machine for winding strandv material on an annular ring and more particularly for winding wire on a toroidal core to produce an electric coil.

In machines of this type it is necessary that the strand material or wire to be wound on the core be stored on a device which may pass through the space enclosed by the ring in order, that the strand may be properly wound. For rings ofsmall diameter which are commonly used in. telephone practice the storage device must be small and at the same'time have a fairly large wire storage capacity. It is also necessary that some means he provided to maintain tension at all times between the strand applied to the ring and that being fed'from the storage device. Heretofore, many machines have been proposed for this purpose which have 'had varying degrees of success.

This invention has as an object a winding machine for annular rings, which is of simple construction and inexpensive to manufacture.

Another object of this invention is a winding machine in which the strand material is maintained under substantially uniform tension during the winding process.

A further object of the invention is a machine in which the strand storing device is sufficiently small to pass through the enclosed space of small annular rings and still have a reasonably large strand storage capacity.

To accomplish these objects the winding mechanism of this invention comprises a single hollow ring having a removable section with one or more pulleys or rollers and a hole in the inner peripheral part. The strand material is stored in the hollow portion of the ring in the form of a helix and is fed out over a pulley and through the hole in theremovable section. A spring actuated plate forms a part of the means for maintaining the proper tension on the strand.

The invention with its objects and features will be understood from the following detailed description and the attached drawing forming a part thereof.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is-a side perspective of the machine;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the storage and winding ring with a part of the ring cut away to show the details thereof; and

Fig. 3 shows in partial section the springpressed plate for maintaining tension in the strand.

For the p p ses of description and illustration Application January 19, 19:9, 8erlal No. 251,749

which, together with pulley 2, support hollow ring 8. Pulley 2 is faced in its groovewith a friction material to aid it in driving ring 6. Also attached to housing 3 substantially centrally of ring 8 is a disc I of somewhat less thickness and of smaller diameter than rings 6.

Spring-pressed against disc I is a'thin metal plate 8 having its peripheral edge bent slightly away from disc 'I.' Plate 8 is adjustably pressed against disc I by means of the structure'shown U in detail in Fig. 3. Near the top of standard 9 y is a hollow cylinder l0 held by means of screwthreaded portion II and nut l2. Enclosed in the hollow cylinder I0 is a helical spring l3 which flts over a cup-shaped piece ll riveted to plate 0. A smooth rod l5 passes through an axial hole in threaded portion II and has on its inner end a thin piston it" of the same diameter as the outside diameter of the helix of spring IS. The. pressure of spring I3 is adjusted by moving rod l5 and attached piston It as will be readily understood. Rod I5 is held in place after adjustment is made by means of set screw ll or other suitable means.

Hollow ring 8 as shown in Fig. 2 has a removable solid section l8 near the central portion of which is a pulley IS. A hole 20 is provided in section ll from one end thereof to the recess containing pulley I9. On the ends of section l8 are reduced portions 2| and 22 which fit snuglyinto the hollow portion of the ring. The ring 6 has sufiicient spring to permit section I! to be snapped into place and held.

The wire 23 is stored in the hollow ring in the form of a helix.- Placing the wire in the ring may be conveniently done by winding it on a thin mandrel, entering the mandrel in the hollow portion and pushing the wire into the ring while withdrawing the mandrel.

The toroidal core 24 to be wound is held in 59 position by means of angle plate 25, flat plate 28, and bolts '21 and 28 as shown. Angle plate 25 is adjustably attached to another angle plate 20 by means of bolt and wing nut 30. Angle piece 2! is provided with a rod 3| which extends into a bearing 32 on plate 3!. The supporting structure may be moved about rod II as a pivot to position core 24 during the winding process or it may be held iixed by means of set screw 34.

A flexible strip 35 is adjustably held by screw 36, as shown, against disc I to aid in maintaining the tension of the wire after it passes from under plate 8.

To operate the machine, ring 6 is taken therefrom by removing section lt'which permits the ring to be withdrawn from the pulleys. The wire is then placed in the ring as explained above and the core clamped between plates 25 and 26. After passing the ring through the core it is positioned on the pulleys. One end of the wire is then drawn out and threaded through hole 20 in ring section I8 and over pulley l9 contained therein. Section II is then snapped into position in ring 8 and the ring moved until section It is near core 24. Suiilcient wire should be drawn out to make one or two turns around the core and then the machine is started, moving the ring in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 1.

As the ring section It moves in the lower half of the revolution more wire is drawn from the ring than is required until it reaches a position diametrically opposite the core when the maximum amount of wire for the revolution will have been withdrawn. During the remainder of the revolution no more wire is withdrawn but that which has already been withdrawn becomes slack. On the next revolution only a small amount of wire will need be withdrawn and this will occur just before the pulley of section it reaches its most distantpoint from the core. At this point there will be a sudden withdrawal with danger of wire breakage. To avoid this, plate l and flexible strip 35 are provided.

It is readily seen from ll'lg. 1 that as the wire 23 is drawn around the core and section II moves away the wire will be drawn between plate 8 and disc I. This will maintain the tension in the wire and take up the slack as section II moves through the upper part of the revolution. After section II passes through the core the wire is drawn over the core and out from between plate I and disc I.

Since plate I is somewhat smaller in diameter than disc I there is a space between plate 8 and the cut-out or reentrant portion of disc 'I where the wire would be free. To bridge this space and maintain some tension on the wire, flexible strip 35 is provided. This strip presses against disc I and the wire is drawn between it and disc I just before it is applied to the core. The wire is, therefore, maintained under substantially constant tension for the complete turn about the core and no shock occurs to cause a sudden snap and resultant breakage of the wire. I

It is to be understood that whereas this speciflc description has been directed to one form which the invention may take, many variations thereof may be made and the invention is, therefore. to be limited only by thescope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A winding machine for winding strand material around closed cores comprising a hollow ring, strand material stored in said hollow ring, said ring having a hole through whichsaid strand material may be withdrawn, means to rotate said ring and means to maintain tension in said strand as it is being wound on said core, said tension means comprising a fixed plate in the area enclosed by the ring and a second plate resiliently pressed against said i'ixed plate between which plates said strand is drawn.

FREDERICK C. BERGER. 

